Green Mountain After Work Hike & Dinner

FAST HIKERS ONLY! We'll hike up Green Mountain from the Rooney Road trailhead doing a loop that goes around the northwest side of Green Mountain/Lakewood. The route has great views of Denver West at night. The hike will start after sunset--Bring a headlamp or a flashlight. The hike is about 5 miles with 950' of elevation gain--the first part is steep. As this hike is a little longer than usual, please do not come on this hike unless you are a reasonable fast hiker. After the hike, those interested will try a new restaurant for this group, Wrigley's Chicago Bar & Grill (click on link for menu and prices).

Please note the details about bringing appropriate gear and in case of bad weather in this Meetup Group's Welcome description. The weather is mercurial this time of year, so on the day of the hike if the weather is questionable be sure to check the website or call or email the leader (cell# will be sent to those who've RSVPed) to confirm the hike is on. This time of year, you may need traction devices such as Micro Spikes. Dogs are welcome on this hike, but they must be on a leash and you must pick up after them. If you join this hike, you are agreeing to this waiver.

Directions: We're meeting at the Rooney Road trailhead on the west side of Green Mountain (don't go to the trailheads on the east side on Alameda Pkwy). Click here for a Google map with directions. From C470 on the west side of Denver, exit Alameda Pkwy. At the exit, turn left, go west over C470, go past the Dinosaur Ridge sign on the right, and then continue on the road where it turns right/north into Rooney Road. After you turn north, you can see the parking lot for the trailhead on the right about a mile up the road. Driving north on Rooney Road, you’ll pass a yellow sign for hikers crossing the road, and then a second one—the parking lot is on the right (east side) just after the second sign, and is south of several large electrical towers.

Although we missed our official hike leader who materialized later for dinner, the evening was perfect for a hike on Green Mountain. As always, a great group of people to hike with and welcome to the first timers!

We're about:

One of the amazing things about Denver is that there are so many hiking trails nearby that after working a full day, you can do a really nice, scenic hike after work and still have time to go out for dinner afterward and get home at a reasonable hour! This Meetup Group will focus on doing that with an experienced hike leader and a friendly bunch of hikers. Any ADULT is welcome.

I have led hundreds of hikes over the past several years, including for this Meetup and other Meetup groups. Click on the Photoslink to see photos this Meetup's previous after-work hikes.

Most of the time, the event will consist of a hike in the Denver area that is approximately 3-4 miles and ~1000' elevation gain, more or less, starting around 6:00-6:30pm, with a moderate pace, and followed by dinner at a nearby restaurant for those that are interested. Usually we meet directly at the trailhead (directions will be provided), although on some occasions we may meet in town and carpool to the trailhead. When a hike event is posted, specific details will be provided about the hike location, trail mileage, elevation gain, and driving distance to trailhead. DO NOT SHOW UP FOR A HIKE UNLESS YOU ARE ON THE ROSTER (i.e. Yes RSVP, but not Wait Listed). I like to have about 30 people, more-or-less, on the hikes, so while I typically limit a hike to a much higher number, due to last minute cancellations we usually end up with roughly 30 people actually showing up. UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED in the hike posting, DOGS WILL BE ALLOWED on the hike as long as they are friendly, on a leash, and keep up with the pace of the group, and you must pick up after your dog.

HIKE PARTICIPANTS SHOULD BRING ADEQUATE GEAR FOR THE HIKE, including hiking boots or trail running shoes, and a pack with drinking water, rain gear, extra clothing in case it gets colder (remember that it gets cooler after sunset), a flashlight or headlamp, and maybe a first aid kit, whistle, trekking poles, insect repellant, and sunglasses. In the winter months, you may need traction devices for you boots such asMicro Spikes. Most, but not all, of these hikes will be within cell phone range. Be aware that sometimes the trails may be muddy--you may wish to bring an extra pair of shoes to change into after the hike, esp. if you're joining us for dinner afterwards. My after-work hikes are generally safe, as they are on trail and not technically difficult. Nonetheless, to protect myself, everyone participating in the hike must agree to a waiver (click here to see waiver).

IN CASE OF BAD WEATHER, I may cancel a hike late in the afternoon on the day of the hike, in which case I will update the website and send out an email to those registered. Therefore, you will need to either have access to either the Meetup.com website and/or your emails (make sure your spam filter is not blocking emails from meetup.com), or you call me on my cell (I'll email my cell # to people who RSVP Yes). Generally, I'll try to make a go/no go decision at least an hour before the hike. Often, it may be raining at 5pm and clear up by 6:30pm, so it is possible I may not cancel a hike, but we show up at the trailhead and the weather is still bad, in which case we'd skip the hike and go straight to happy hour/dinner.

Please remember that I am just a volunteer, I do not charge anything for organizing or leading these events, and I am under no obligation to do any of this. My hikes are extremely popular and fill up very quickly, and I often get complaints about how difficult it is to get on my hikes. You can read my full response to that problem is here: More Hikes Please!